Thirty people suspected of possessing or selling controlled substances face arrest warrants that came as a result of a year-end sweep, the Lake County Sheriff’s Department announced in a release Friday.
Investigations by the Lake County Drug Task Force and law enforcement yielded 62 charges for people involved in major heroin and cocaine distribution rings in Lake County, the release states.
The people already served with arrest warrants recently or are being sought by law enforcement, according to the release, include:
*Gary: Jessica Fisher, 23; Michael Wafford, 63; Amanda Elea, 34; Lenell Shearry, 45; Jacqueline Kelly, 43; Thomas Watkins, 36; Jason Riley, 39; Bobby Hall, 36; Alda Brooks, 33; Imaru Jones, 33; Robert Hawkins, 63; Ernest Bankhead, 57; Marcus White, 31; Sherrode Stamps, 19.
*Michigan City: Brian Logmann, 42; Douglas King III, 27; Randi Wilson, 40; Damon Moye, 38; Austin Williams, 24.
*Merrillville: Duane Lamb, 42; Javon Kennedy, 42; Lydon Oakes, 27; Reginald Porter, 47.
*Griffith: Frank Mesa, 28, and Jared Herron, 26.
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*East Chicago: Daniele Baldassari, 30.
*Highland: Matthew Jones, 28.
*Hammond: Shervon Bowman, 29.
*Lake Station: Amy Stevens, 38.
*Dolton, Ill.: Thomas Powell, 48.
“The ever-increasing number of heroin overdose deaths, especially among young citizens, is a tragic situation. Our investigative efforts on heroin distribution and other dangerous drugs are intended to directly and immediately reduce the availability of these narcotics in Lake County,” said Sheriff John Buncich in the release.
The task force worked with the Lake County Prosecutor’s Office, Porter County Sheriff’s Police, LaPorte County Narcotics Division and HIDTA Investigative Support Center in the investigations, the release states.
The investigations were funded by the Northwestern Indiana Counties Heroin Eradication Grant, which is sponsored by the Indiana State Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Grant, according to the release.
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